Page:Dictionary of Greek and Roman Geography Volume II.djvu/1143

 TEGEA. in the formation of the Arcadian confederacy. (Xen. i Eell. vi. 5. § 6, seq.) When Rlantineia a few years government, and formed an alliance with its old enemy Sparta, Tegea remained faithful to the new confederacy, and fought under Epaminondas against the Spartans at the great battle of llantineia, 362. (Xen. Btll. vii. 4. § 36, seq., vii. 5. § 5, seq.) Tegea at a later period joined the Aetolian League, but soon after the accession of Cleomenes III. to the Spartan throne it fonned an alliance with Sparta, together with Mantineia and Orchomenus. It thus became involved in hostilities with the Achaeans, and in the war which followed, called the Cleomenic War, it was taken by Antigonus Doson, the ally of the Achaeans, and annexed to the Achaean League, B.C. 222. (Pol. ii. 46, 54, seq.) In 218 Tegea was attacked by Lycurgus, the tyrant of Sparta, who obtained possession of the whole city with the exception of the acropolis. It subsequently fell into the hands of Machanidas, but was recovered by the Acliaeans after the defeat of the latter tyrant, who was slain in battle by Philopoemen. (Pol. V. 17, xi. 18.) In the time of Strabo Tegea was the only one of the Arcadian towns which continued to be inhabited (Strab. viii. p. 388), and it was still a place of importance in the time of Pausanias, who has given us a minute account of its public buildings. (Paus. viii. 45 — 48, 53.) Tesiea was entirely destroyed by Alaric towards the end of the 4th century after Christ. (Claud. B. Get. 576; comp. Zosim. v. 6.) The territory of Tegea formed the southern part of the plain of Tripolitzii, of which a description and a map are given under JLv^'Tixeia. Tegea was about 10 miles S. of the latter city, in a direct line, and about 3 miles SE. of the modern town of TripoUtzd. Being situated in the lowest part of the plain, it was exposed to inundations caused by the waters flowing down from the sur- rounding mountains; and in the course of ages the soil has been considerably raised by the depo- sitions brought down by the waters. Hence there are scarcely any remains of the city visible, and its size can only be conjectured from the broken pieces of stone and other fragments scattered on the plain, and from the foundations of walls and buildings discovered by the peasants in working in the fields. It appears, however, that the ancient city extended from the hill oi Jio Sostis (^St. Saviour) on the N., over the hamlets Ihrakim-Efftndi and PaUo-Epis- kopi, at least as far as Ahhuria and Piali. This would make the city at least 4 miles in circum- ference. The principal remains are at Piali. Near the principal church of this village Leake found the foundations of an ancient building, of fine squared stones, among which were two pieces of some large columns of marble; and there can be little doubt that these are the remains of the ancient temple of Athena Alea. This temple was said to have been originally built by Aleus, the founder of Tegea; it was burnt down in u. c. 394, and the new building, which was erected by Scopas, is said by Pausanias to have been the largest and most magnificent temple in the Pelo- ponnesus (Paus. viii. 45. § 4, seq. ; for details see Diet. ofBiogr. art. Scopas.) Pausanias entered the city through the gate leading to Pallantium, consequently the south-western gate, which must have been near Piali. He begins his description with the temple of Athena Alea, and then goes across the great igora to the theatre, the remains of which Ross TEGEA. 1119 traces in the ancient foundations of the ruined church of Puleo-EpiskopL Perhaps this theatre was the splendid marble one built by Antiochus IV. Epiphanes in B.C. 175. (Liv. xli. 20.) Pausanias ends his description with the mention of a height (jcoipiov vtpT]K6v, viii. 53. § 9), probably the hill Aio Sostis in the N. of the town, and apparently the same as that which Pausanias elsewhere calls the Watch-Hill (^xSipos ^uAaKTpis, viii. 48. § 4), and Polybius the acropolis (^uKpa, v. 17). None of the other public buildings of Tegea mentioned by Pau- sanias can be identified with certainty; but there can be no doubt if excavations were made on its site many interesting remains would be discovered, since the deep alluvial soil is favourable to their preservation. The territory of Tegea N. of the city, towards Mantineia, is a plain of considerable size, and is Usually called the Tegeatic plain (TeyeariKhv Tre'Sioi'). There was a smaller plain, separated from the former by a low range of mountains S. of TripoUtzd, and lying between Tegea and Pallantium : it was called the Jlanthyric plain (^MavdvpiKov Trt~ Biov), from Manthyrea, one of the ancient demi of Tegea, the ruins of which are situated SW. of Tegea, on a slope of Mt. Boreium. (Paus. viii. 44. § 7, comp. viii. 45. § 1, 47. § 1; Steph. B. s. v. Mavdvpia.) The remainder of the Tegeatis on the E. and S. is occupied by the mountains separating it from Argolis and Sparta respectively, with the excej)tion of a small plain running eastward from the Tegeatic plain to the foot of Mt. Parthenium, and probably called the Corythic plain, from Cory- theis, one of the ancient demi of Tegea, which was situated in this plain. (Paus. viii. 45. § 1, 54. § 4.) The plain of Tegea having no natural outlet for its waters is drained by natural chasms through the limestone mountains, called katavdthra. Of these the two most important are at the modern village of Persovd and at the marsh of TaM. The former is situated in the Corythic plain above mentioned, at the foot of Mt. Parthenium, and the latter is the marsh in the ]Ianthyric plain, SW. of Tegea. The chief river in the district is now called the Saranta- potamos, which is undoubtedly the Alpheius of Pau- sanias (viii. 54. § 1, seq.). The Alpheius rose on the frontiers of Tegea and Sparta, at a place called Phylace (ivAaKT], near Krya Vrysis), one of the ancient demi of Tegea, and, as we may infer from its name, a fortified watch-tower for the protection of the pass. A little beyond Phylace the Alpheius receives a stream composed of several niduntain torrents at a place named Symuola (2i''|U§"Aa) ; but upon entering the plain of Tegea its course was difierent in ancient times. It now flows in a north-easterly direction through the plain, receives the river of Dhuliand (the ancient Garates, Vapa- Tr)s, Paus. viii. 54. § 4), flows through the Cory- thic plain, and enters the katavithra at Pursovd. Pausanias, on the otlier hand, says (viii. 54. § 2) that the Alpheius descends into the earth in tlio Tegeatic plain, reappears near Asea (SW. of Tegea), where, after joining the Eurotas, it sinks a secund time into the earth, and again appears at Asea. Hence it would seem that the Alpheius anciently flowed in a nortii-westcrly direction, and entered the katavothra at the marsh of Taki, in the JIanthyric ])lain. There is a tradition among the j)easants that the course of the river was changed by a Turk, wdio acquired property in the neighbourhood, because the
 * afterwards quarrelled with the supreme Arcadian